This invention relates generally to an apparatus for removing extraneous material from clothing, and especially to electrically operated apparatus for removing fabric or material that has been pilled.
Frequently, clothing made of wool, chemical fibers and other fabrics and/or materials over a period of time becomes matted forming little balls a condition commonly referred to as pilling. In the art, a device depicted in FIG. 6 for removing pilled material from clothing has been provided which is electrically operated and formed with a housing 200 in the shape of a right cylindrical body. This pill removing device includes an outer blade 201 which is mounted on the surface of the housing and an inner blade 202 located within and operably coupled to a motor 207 which is also located within the housing. The inner blade rotatably cooperates with the outer blade to cut pilled material from clothing when the pilled material is pressed against the outer blade. An impeller type fan 215 near and directly above the inner blade and within the housing draws the cut pilled material into the housing. The cut pilled material is then either impelled through a discharge port 214 in the periphery of the housing or pooled within the housing below the inner blade in the region 216 requiring that the apparatus be partially disassembled in order to retrieve the separated pilled material. All other components of the device are either directly above or below the fan in order to accommodate the right cylindrical shape of the housing.
The right cylindrical shape of the pill removing device is uncomfortable to grip since an operator needs to hold the housing near the blades in order to apply sufficient pressure to the device to cut the pilled material. Furthermore, the cylindrical shape results in the operator having to hold the device in a horizontal direction, somewhat like a pen. Therefore, it becomes difficult to both press the device against the clothing and to slide the device past the clothing at the same time.
Pooling of the pill material within the body of the housing severely restricts the amount of material which may be cut before the pilled material needs to be emptied from the body. In an attempt to overcome this space limitation and to avoid having the separated material blown through the discharge port (and, for example, onto the ground thereafter), a dust box has been used to collect the cut pilled material travelling through the discharge port. Unfortunately, due to the cylindrical shape of the device, the dust box and cylindrical housing form a gap therebetween allowing the cut pilled material to escape from the dust box.